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California Senate Committee Steamrolls Over Children’s Safety Online, Small Businesses, and the First Amendment

Today, the California State Senate Appropriations Committee decided to bulldoze over citizens’ rights, privacy, and entrepreneurialism. By approving 3 bills regulating how online platforms operate—AB 587, AB 2879, and AB 2273—these lawmakers have decided to completely ignore the welfare of their citizens by taking an approach that fails families, dampens economic development and innovation, and violates the First Amendment. 

NetChoice urges the full state Senate and Gov. Gavin Newsom to reject these efforts to ignore constitutional and parental rights and destroy innovation in the Golden State. 

“These laws will make it harder for Peloton to recommend new exercises to teens and Barnes & Noble’s Nook to recommend continuing to the next chapter or starting new books to high schoolers,” said Jennifer Huddleston, NetChoice Policy Counsel. “California has been a leader in technology development, but today’s actions would give innovators yet another reason to leave the Golden State to avoid overly burdensome regulation that harms families and violates the First Amendment.”

“It’s surprising that California chose to copy Florida and Texas’ laws which courts have already found unconstitutional. California families, not technology companies, are the ones who will truly bear the burden of today’s proposals,” Huddleston continued.

California lawmakers—especially Gov. Newsom—must reject these unconstitutional efforts which will fail families online.